Mott Community College president and trustee defend plane trip to Escanaba meeting

FLINT, Michigan — A local college spent $1,200 to fly two people to a meeting — on the other side of the state.

Mott Community College President M. Richard Shaink and Trustee Sally Shaheen Joseph are among eight college representatives who have raised eyebrows for flying to a triannual Michigan Community College Association meeting in Escanaba last week in a plane chartered by the association.

In a sour economy that has many businesses tightening belts, some see flying to the Upper Peninsula on the taxpayer’s dime as out of touch.

The college paid $1,200 for two plane tickets to fly in Friday morning and return Saturday afternoon — almost the same price as a full time student’s semester tuition.

“If they’re going somewhere to learn things that are going to help us, I don’t mind,” said MCC student Krystal Miller, 25, of Flint. “But that’s a lot of money. Couldn’t they have carpooled?”

MCC officials say flying up north was the most efficient way to travel, cutting time and costs from extra lodging, food and mileage reimbursement tied to making the six-hour drive that’s about 370-miles one way.

And the Oct. 2-3 meeting — which focused on issues facing rural colleges — provided valuable information on community college issues and networking, they say.

“This was a twin-engine, eight passenger plane. It was no joy trip,” Shaink said. “This was doing business for the college, for our community and for our students. This is where decisions are made, information is exchanged and we work with other community colleges to maximize our dollars.”

The state’s 28 community colleges rotate hosting the meeting, which was held at Bay de Noc Community College in Escanaba this fall and will be hosted at MCC in spring.

MCC officials say the more than $40 million in grant money MCC has reeled into the community is because of the connections, education and ideas gained from such trips that bring community colleges together.

“It sounds very lavish to charter a plane but it was more efficient and saved a day and a half on the road,” MCC Spokesman Michael Kelly said, adding “We need to be aware of what’s going on and influence what’s going on. Community colleges were one of the few that did not have cuts in Lansing. That was not by accident. That took a lot of work.”

But at least eight colleges opted out of the Escanaba meeting, some saying they couldn’t justify the price of traveling that far.

“We’re making every effort to be as efficient as possible,” said Chris Hollister, director of public relations for Lansing Community College, which faced a $9 million deficit this fiscal year. “The president and leadership team have cut back on travel expenses and he’s much more selective of the trips he makes.

“We do have to walk the talk and think about every expenditure we make here to keep tuition as affordable as possible. Perception can be the reality at times and we are sensitive to that.”

MCC was the only local college to freeze tuition this year but that followed nearly seven years of increases. The 3.2 percent hike in 2008 meant an average full-time student would pay about $1,132 per semester.

The MCCA-chartered plane, which left from Lansing and made a pick-up stop in Traverse City, cost a total of almost $5,000 split between MCC, Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek, Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City and the MCCA.

MCC also paid for two hotel rooms and food expenses on top of transportation. The total cost of the trip was not immediately available.

“I don’t make the reservations. I would have preferred to drive but it would have cost more,” said Joseph in a phone interview from California where she is attending a separate community college conference. “It was part of my duties as a trustee to keep educated and to bring back information to the board so we can provide the best services possible.”

Joseph did not elaborate on why she believed driving would cost more than the flight and referred questions to Shaink.

A group of community colleges on the west side of the state, including Grand Rapids Community College, also chartered their own plane to get to the meeting, according to the MCCA.

Among agenda items were legislation updates on a bill to allow concealed weapons on campuses, retirement legislation and speaker of the House Andy Dillon’s health care plan.

Participants also heard about a federal broadband initiative and two presentations via teleconference on state budget reforms and health care reform affecting community colleges.

And the MCCA board voted to cut the number of times it meets from four to three a year.

An MCC trustee and frequent adminstration critic doesn’t believe the trip was worth the cost.

“It’s extravagant,” MCC Trustee Andy Everman said. “With all the technology we have today, you can do teleconferencing for that.

“As a taxpayer, I want to know how does this translate into additional funding for the college? How does this translate into better education for our students? If this can’t relate back to the core mission statement of the college, it’s just a boondoggle to show up on a plane.”

This week,Joseph, MCC board chairwoman Lenore Croudy and Trustee Celia Turner are on a week-long trip to the American Association of Community Colleges conference in San Francisco. The cost of that trip is not yet available.

Such trips are important, said MCCA President Michael Hansen — who called this a “critical time for community colleges,” which are seeing record enrollment and are trying to meet high expectations of steering an economic turnaround by re-training people.

He said some of the best exchanges happen during informal conversations and breaks at such meetings.

“I think it’s very important for trustees and presidents to meet face to face three times a year to discuss some of the issues facing community colleges right now,” he said.